In 1989, political changes in Eastern Europe and civil unrest in Germany put pressure on the East German government to loosen some of its regulations on travel to West Germany. ... The fall of the Berlin Wall was the first step towards German reunification.

Who is responsible for the fall of the Berlin Wall?

Although changes in the GDR leadership and encouraging speeches by Gorbachev about nonintervention in Eastern Europe boded well for reunification, the world was taken by surprise when, during the night of November 9, 1989, crowds of Germans began dismantling the Berlin Wall—a barrier that for almost 30 years had ...

Why did Russia leave East Germany?

As part of the 1990 agreement for German reunification, the former conquerors of World War II promised to pull their soldiers out of Berlin by this fall. Russia further agreed to leave Germany ++ altogether, getting a $9 billion farewell gift to ease the pain of resettling its departing soldiers.